Carton-opening mechanism for packaging machines



May 27, 1924.

J. MACNAUGHTAN CARTON OPENING MECHANISM FOR PACKAG-ING MACHINES Filed Aug. 51.

Patented May 27, 1924.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

J'AMm MAONA'UGHTAN, 0F BROOKLINE, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO GORDAN i MACHINE COMPANY, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORATION OfF MASSA- CH'USETTS.

CARTON-OPENING MECHANISM FOR PACKAGING IMACHINES.`

Application led August 31, 1923. Serial No. 660,436.

To all whom it may concer/n,

Be it known that I, JAMES MAGNAUGHTAN, a citizen of the -United States, residing at Brookline, in the county of Norfolk land State of Massachusetts, have invented' new and useful Improvementsin Carton-Opening Mechanism for Packaging Machines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention is embodied'in certain improvements hereinafter described and claimed in the'cart'on-opening mechanism of a packaging machine of the type disclosed by' the Lane and Macnaughtan Patent, No. 1,439,966, dated December 26, 1922. The. carton-opening mechanism of said patented machine is adapted to open a attened carton which, When opened, is oblong in cross section, andv is not adapted to open a carton which, when opened, is square lin cross section and has four sides of equal width.

The said patented opening mechanism is embodied in vertically reciprocating primary and secondary blades adapted to enter and partially `open a flattened carton, the blades being in the same plane, or edge to edge, when entering the carton, and means for turning the secondary blade Within the carton to press said blade against one of the carton sides, and thereby completely open the carton, thesecondary blade being much narrower than the primary blade.

vIn accordance with the present invention the Secondary blade is of substantially the same width as the primary blade, and is located beside and in contact with the primary blade, so that the vertical edges of the blades substantially register with each other, the secondary blade having a wide bearing on one of the sides of a square carton when the carton is opened. Y

Of the accompanying drawings forming a partof thisspecificationf; v- 1 v Figure 1. is'an edge view, showing a carton-opening mechanism embodying my 'im- Provement;

Figure 2 isa vside view ofthe same p Figure 52* i's 'an enlarged Sectionv en line 2*-2. of Figure 2.-

Fi ure 3 is a fragmentary Sectional view, showmg'the carton fully opened. Figures 4 and 5 are perspective v`views, showing the primary and secondary blades.

Figures 6, 7 and 8 are fragmentary sectional views illustrating-the opening operation. 1

The same reference characters'indicate the same parts Vin all the figures. y 12 represents the delivering end'portion of: a raceway adapted to Vguide ay column of collapsed cartons, forced forward through the raceway. The foremost carton is arrested by detents 14 and 15 (Figure 6), the` side Walls Vof the raceway contacting with and guiding two opposite vertical edges'o'f the collapsed carton.

The carton has four sides, a, b c and d of equal width, s`o that when opened it is square incross section. 'The body of the foremost carton is opened and left in the condition Shown by Figure 8, by opening blades including a primary yblade 16, .and a secondary blade 17, arranged and operated as next described.

The blade- 16 is attached as by rivets 18, to a carrier 19, which is vertically movable by a vertically reciprocated slide 20, the carrier Vand slide being connected by means such as an armA 21, on the carrier, a bracket 22 on v the slide, and a screw 23 securingthe arm to the bracket. The slide 20 is reciprocated on a fixed vertical guide 24, by mechanism including a connecting rod 24 (Figure 1), and power-operated means (not shown). for reciprocating the connecting rod. y

The path Yof movement of the rimary blade 16 is such that when the blade vis moved downward from theV losition shown by Figure 1, its lower end, w ich is reduced to a thinl edgerby a `beveled face 16,..is inserted in the foremost flattened carton and partially opens the same. The secondary blade 1-7 is -beside'and lincontact with the primary'blade when theblades yareraised, and its llower end is reduceduto aethm edge by'l :ai-"beveled face :17,'f and. is somewhat higher than the lower end of the primary blade. The lower end of the secondary blade, therefore, enters the foremost carton immediately after the entrance of the primary blade and additionally opens the carton.

The carrier 19 is provided with spaced apart. bearings 26, in which is journaled a vertical rock shaft 27, having an arm 28 (Figure 5) rojecting from the rock shaft between the hearings 26, and provided with a trundle roll 28". The rock shaft moves vertically with the carrier. The secondary blade 17 is fixed as by rivets 29 to a lower arm 30 on the rock shaft. A torsion spring 31, engaged at one end with the rock shaft and at its opposite end with the carrier 19, presses the trundle roll 28Il against a fixed cam-shaped block 32, secured to a fixed standard Said block has a vertical upper face 34 and an inclined winding lower face 35.

The arrangement is such that when the carrier 19 is raised, the trundle roll 28 bears on the vertical face 34, and the secondary blade 17 is held in contact with the primary blade 16, until the two blades, in moving down, have entered the foremost carton. When the trundle roll reaches the inclined face 35, the spring 31 turns the rock shaft and causes the trundle roll to follow the inclinedv face, and the secondary blade to swing outward, until it is at a right angle with the primary blade, as shown by Figures 3 and 8, and fully opens the carton.

The rock shaft 27 constitutes the axis on which the secondary blade swings and is offset from the carrier 19 and from the primary blade, as shown by Figure 4, and by dotted lines in Figures 6, 7, and 8. The blades are of substantially equal width, and the vertical edges of the secondary blade register with those of the primary blade, when the blades are raised.

When the blades enter the carton, the primary blade bears on the side a from its junction with the side c, nearly to its junction with the side d, and the secondary blade bears on the side d from its junction with the side b, nearly to its junction with the side a. When the secondary blade swings outward and completes the opening of the carton, its outer edge is in the angle formed by the junction of the sides b and d, and the outer edge of the primary blade is in the angle formed by the junction of the sides a and o. The secondary blade in moving outward to the position shown by Figure 7, disengages the carton from the detent 15, and in completing its outward movement, disengages the carton from the stop 14, as shown by Figure 8.

To the primary blade 16 is fixed an angular ear 38, arranged to bear on the upper end of the carton side b, when the carton is opened, and push the carton downward memes to flap-closing and cartonfcarrying means below the blades, as in the above-nientioned patent. The secondary blade 17 is provided with a notch or recess 39, througlrwhich said ear projects, said recess permitting the described movements of the secondary blade.

The raceway bottom is provided at one edge with a stop linger 40, projecting from its outer end and ada ted to support one corner oi a lower end ap c of the foremost flattened carton. as shown by Figure 2, and by dotted lines in Figure 1, and prevent the carton from being forced downward by the blades when they first enter the carton and are located side by side. Vhen the carton is opened the flap e swings outward and leaves the stop finger 40, so that the finger does not obstruct the downward movement of the opened carton by the ear 38. To ensure the entrance ot' the secondary blade into the carton without catching on the upper edge of the end fiap f at tbe upper end of the carton side d, I slightly recess the outer side of the primary blade to form a shoulder 41, on which the lower end of the secondary blade bears when in contact with the primary blade, as best shown by Figure 2, so that the face 17a of the secondary blade is flush with the face 16 of the primary blade.

It is to be understood that the structure shown by the drawing, but not referred to in the appended claims, is ortmay be substantially the same as in the above-mentioned patent, and that the mechanism hereinafter claimed is characterized chiefly by the fact that the secondary blade is superimposed on the primary blade when the blades are raised, so that the blades are adapted to open a carton which is square in cross section, and has sides of equal width, instead of a carton which is oblon in cross section, and has two sides of major width and two of minor width, as shown by the above-mentioned patent.

I claim:

1. A packaging machine having a carton raceway, means for releasably confining a attened carton therein, reci rocating primary and secondary blades oi) substantially equal width, means conning the secondary blade superimposed upon and in contact with the primary blade, with the edges of said blades substantially registering with each other when the blades are retracted, and means for swinging the secondary blade from a position beside the primary blade to a position at right an les therewith when the blades are projected. the primary blade being formed to bear on one side, and the secondary blade on an adjoining side of a carton which is square in cross section.

2. A packaging machine substantially as specified by claim 1, the said primary blade having an ear adapted to depress an opened 4. A packaging machine substantiall specied by claim 1, said primary blade ing a shoulder on which the lower end of said secondary blade bears when the blades are entering a flattened carton.

In testimony whereof I have axed my signature. l l

JAMES MACNAUGHTAN. 

